FUN TAX FACT FRIDAY:
US PRESIDENT WITH THE BIGGEST TAX TAX HIKE
The U.S. president associated with the largest peacetime tax increase in terms of dollar amount & economic impact is President Bill Clinton.
Key Details:
Tax Increase: The Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993
Signed Into Law: August 10, 1993
Estimated Revenue Raised: Over $240 billion over five years
Major Components:
1. Raised the top income tax rate from 31% to 39.6%
2. Increased corporate income tax for large corporations
3. Increased the taxable portion of Social Security benefits
4. Phased out deductions & exemptions for higher-income earners
Context:
*The 1993 act was passed without a single Republican vote & was controversial at the time. However, it coincided with a period of strong economic growth & budget surpluses by the late 1990s.
Notable Mention:
President Franklin D. Roosevelt also passed large tax increases during the Great Depression & World War II, including the Revenue Act of 1942, which greatly expanded the income tax base — arguably the largest in terms of scope & percentage of Americans affected, but during wartime, not peacetime.
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